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JUDGMENT of the COURT 9 August 1994 * in Joined Cases C JUDGMENT OF 9. 8. 1994 —JOINED CASES C-363/93, C-407/93, C-408/93, C-409/93, C-410/93 AND C-411/93 JUDGMENT OF THE COURT 9 August 1994 * In Joined Cases C-363/93, C-407/93, C-408/93, C-409/93, C-410/93 and C-411/93, REFERENCE to the Court under Article 177 of the EEC Treaty by the Cour d'Appel, Paris, for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that court between René Lancry SA and Direction Générale des Douanes REFERENCES to the Court under Article 177 of the EEC Treaty by the Tribunal d'Instance, Saint-Denis (Réunion) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that court between Dindar Confort SA and * Language of the case: French. I - 3978 LANCRY v DIRECTION GENERALE DES DOUANES Conseil Régional de la Réunion, Direction Régionale des Douanes de la Réunion, and between Christian Ah-Son and Direction regionale des douanes de la Reunion, Conseil regional de la Reunion, and between Paul Chevassus-Marche and Direction Régionale des Douanes de la Réunion, Conseil Régional de la Réunion, and between Conforéunion SA I - 3979 JUDGMENT OF 9. 8. 1994 — JOINED CASES C-363/93, C-407/93, C-408/93, C-409/93, C-410/93 AND C-411/93 and Conseil Régional de la Réunion, Direction Régionale des Douanes de la Réunion, and between Dindar Autos SA and Conseil Régional de la Réunion, Direction Régionale des Douanes de la Réunion, on the interpretation of Article 9 et seq. of the EEC Treaty, and on the validity of Article 4 of Council Decision 89/688/EEC of 22 December 1989 concerning the dock dues in the French overseas departments (OJ 1989 L 399, p. 46), THE COURT, composed of: O. Due, President, G. E Mancini, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida, M. Diez de Velasco and D. A. O. Edward (Rapporteur), (Presidents of Chambers), C. N . Kakouris, R. Joliét, F. A. Schockweiler, G. C. Rodríguez Iglesias, F. Gré- visse, M. Zuleeg, P. J. G. Kapteyn and J. L. Murray, Judges, I-3980 LANCRY v DIRECTION GENERALE DES DOUANES Advocate General: G. Tesauro, Registrar: D. Louterman-Hubeau, Principal Administrator, after considering the written observations submitted on behalf of: — René Lancry SA, by Christian Charrière-Bournazel, Philippe Champetier de Ribes and Jean-Pierre Spitzer, Avocats at the Cour de Paris, and Pascal Dubois, of the Limoges Bar, — Dindar Confort, Conforéunion and Dindar Autos, by Jean-Claude Bouchard, Charles-Etienne Gudin and Thierry Vialaneix, of the Hauts-de-Seine Bar, — the French Government, by Jean-Louis Falconi, Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and Catherine de Salins, Adviser on Foreign Affairs, acting as Agents, — the Spanish Government, by Alberto José Navarro Gonzalez, Director-General for Community Legal and Institutional Coordination, and by Rosario Silva de Lapuerta, Abogado del Estado, of the Community Legal Affairs Department, acting as Agents, — the Council of the European Union, by Ramon Torrent, Director in the Legal Service, and Christina Giorgi, Adviser in the Legal Service, acting as Agents, — the Commission of the European Communities, by Blanca Rodriguez Galindo, of its Legal Service, and Virginia Melgar, a national civil servant seconded to the Legal Service, acting as Agents, I-3981 JUDGMENT OF 9. 8. 1994 —JOINED CASES C-363/93, C-407/93, C-408/93, C-409/93, C-410/93 AND C-411/93 having regard to the Report for the Hearing, after hearing the oral observations of René Lancry SA, represented by Christian Charrière-Bournazel, Jean-Pierre Spitzer and Pascal Dubois, Avocats, Dindar Confort, Conforéunion and Dindar Autos, represented by Jean-Claude Bouchard, Charles-Etienne Gudin and Thierry Vialaneix, Avocats, the Région Réunion, rep­ resented by Pierre Soler-Couteaux, of the Strasbourg Bar, the Spanish Govern­ ment, represented by Rosario Silva de Lapuerta, acting as Agent, the Council of the European Union, represented by Ramon Torrent, acting as Agent, and the Commission of the European Communities, represented by Virginia Melgar, acting as Agent, at the hearing on 27 April 1994, after hearing the Opinion of the Advocate General at the sitting on 28 June 1994, gives the following Judgment 1 By judgment of 7 July 1993, received at the Court on 26 July 1993, the Cour d'Appel (Court of Appeal), Paris, referred to the Court for a preliminary ruling under Article 177 of the EEC Treaty a question on the validity of Council Deci­ sion 89/688/EEC of 22 December 1989 concerning the dock dues in the French overseas departments (OJ 1989 L 399, p. 46, hereinafter 'the decision on dock dues'). By judgments of 23 August 1993, received at the Court on 1 October 1993, the Tribunal d'Instance (District Court), Saint-Denis (Réunion), referred to the Court for a preliminary ruling under Article 177 of the EEC Treaty two questions on the interpretation of Article 9 et seq. of the EEC Treaty and on the validity of the decision on dock dues. I - 3982 LANCRY v DIRECTION GENERALE DES DOUANES 2 Those questions were raised in proceedings concerning claims for the repayment of sums levied as dock dues ('octroi de mer'). 3 It is apparent from the documents before the Court that dock dues were levied in the French overseas departments at the time when the Treaty came into force. They were imposed on all goods, whatever their country of origin, including met­ ropolitan France, by reason of their entry into the overseas department concerned. By contrast, products of the region concerned were not subject to dock dues or to any equivalent internal tax. It is common ground that dock dues were levied with two objectives in mind, the first being to raise tax revenue and the second to encourage local economic activity. 4 Since a number of complaints had been made concerning dock dues, in 1984 the Commission initiated the infringement procedure against the French Republic. Later it decided to suspend that procedure, preferring to seek a political solution, in which connection the Council adopted two decisions on the basis of Arti­ cles 227(2) and 235 of the Treaty. 5 The first is Decision 89/687/EEC of the Council of 22 December 1989 establishing a programme of options specific to the remote and insular nature of the French overseas departments (Poséidom) (OJ 1989 L 399, p. 39, hereinafter 'the Poséidom decision'). The second and fourth recitals to that decision state in particular that the French overseas departments suffer from a serious structural lack of develop­ ment aggravated by a number of constraints, which makes it necessary to step up Community support in order to promote their economic and social development. I - 3983 JUDGMENT OF 9. 8. 1994 —JOINED CASES C-363/93, C-407/93, C-408/93, C-409/93, C-410/93 AND C-411/93 6 The second decision is the one on dock dues which implements the tax component of the Poséidom decision. Article 1 of the decision on dock dues provides that by 31 December 1992 at the latest, the French authorities are to take the necessary- measures for the dock dues arrangements then in force in the French overseas departments to apply to all products whether imported into or produced in those areas. Article 4 provides that the French Republic is authorized to maintain the current dock dues arrangements until not later than 31 December 1992, on condi­ tion that any proposal concerning extension of the list of products subject to dock dues or any increase in the rates thereof is notified to the Commission, which may oppose it within two months. 7 In Case C-163/90 Administration des Douanes et Droits Indirects v Legros and Others [1992] ECR I-4625, a number of questions on the interpretation of the Treaty were referred to the Court for a preliminary ruling, with respect to charges exhibiting the features of dock dues. In its judgment in that case, the Court held that a charge proportional to the customs value of goods levied by a Member State on goods imported from another Member State by reason of their entry into a region of the territory of the first Member State constitutes a charge having effect equivalent to a customs duty on imports, notwithstanding the fact that the charge is also imposed on goods entering that region from another part of the same State. However, the Court limited the temporal effects of that judgment. 8 In the Legros case, the material events occurred before the Poséidom decision or the decision on dock dues came into force. The Court did not, therefore, give a ruling on either the interpretation or the validity of those decisions. I - 3984 LANCRY v DIRECTION GENERALE DES DOUANES The facts in Case C-363/93 Lancry 9 As Martinique produces no flour, that product has always been imported from metropolitan France, other Community countries or the United States of America. In 1974 dock dues on flour were introduced in Martinique. 10 René Lancry SA ('Lancry'), which markets in Martinique flour imported inter alia from metropolitan France, brought a number of actions. By judgments of the Tri­ bunal Administratif (Administrative Court), Fort-de-France, of 2 April 1985 and 25 April 1989, upheld by the judgment of the French Council of State of 2 April 1993, Lancry obtained the annulment of the decisions fixing the rate of dock dues at 25% and subsequently at 20%. In accordance with those judgments, Lancry obtained reimbursement of the difference between the rate annulled and the previous rate of 15%. It then applied to the Tribunal d'Instance, Fort-de- France, to recover all the sums which it had paid during the same period by way of dock dues.
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